Kuniko
by kimchiluv
Summary: A familiar face from the past arrives and is about to give an interesting turn to our favourite tennis players' lives.  YukimuraXOC
1. Chapter 1

**A/N Hello. I have been reading fanfiction for a very long time now but i've only gotten to reading and not writing. Well...this year, I've decided to just give it a go and also because I want to improve my writing skills~ So thanks for dropping by and I hope you enjoy my first piece. Constructive criticism will be welcomed however flamers will not be. I'll try to update as many times as I can, however, if there are times where I go for long periods of time without anything new, I apologise in advance. It's probably cause I'm occupied by school stuff cause its my last year (YAY! XD) so yea...i think that's all for now so I present to you, the first chapter to Kuniko.**

**DISCLAIMER: I do not own the Prince of Tennis series or the characters; the only exceptions being my OC.**

**Chapter 1**

"It's been so long," I thought as I stepped out of the airport. I felt energy rushing through my body even though I had been on the plane for more than 10 hours. I managed to quickly hail a cab and was on my way home. Home... I couldn't wait. It had been a while since I tasted my mother's delicious oriental cooking again, so different from what I had gotten used to for the past few years in London. I hadn't told my parents yet that I was coming home because I wanted to surprise them. I can't wait to see my brother as well. It's been so long. Of course, we sent emails to eachother but it wasn't enough. He was my twin brother after all. I'm surprised I lasted this long without seeing him.

As the driver drove through the streets, which were becoming more familiar as we went further, I could see a tennis court coming up. I sighed. My parents often wondered if my brother and I were really twins because we were polar opposites. It was only due to our same hair colours and eyes that they rarely seriously questioned it. Varying from our body language and personality, we were quite a pair. This also included the fact that I completely failed at tennis which was quite ironic, due to my brother being so well-known for his skills. As I was thinking this, a large sign caught my eye.

"Wait! Stop here please."

The sign read in large capital letters, 'SEIGAKU vs. HYOTEI Tennis Tournament'.

Seigaku, huh? Oh yes...that's right. I remember Onii-chan saying something about a tournament in his last email to me...

In the space of a few seconds, I made my decision. I thanked the driver and got off. With my luggage in my hand, I walked towards the courts. As I got closer, I could slowly hear the sounds of cheering. For a few minutes, I tried straining my ears to hear what they were yelling, but once I did, I smiled wistfully, lost in my thoughts.

"SEIGAKU! FIGHT-O! FIGHT-O! FIGHT-O!"

"GO BUCHOU~~~!

"ATOBE! ATOBE! ATOBE! ATOBE!"

So...Onii-chan and Atobe huh...Interesting. With anticipation, I quickened my pace and suddenly, my eyes rested on an intense match between the two rivals, on the familiar patch of green and white.

I looked around.

The two schools were cheering their hearts out. Besides the two respective schools, there were three other schools with me. It seems that they had finished they're own matches and had come to watch this one while recuperating,still soaked in their own sweat . I turned towards my brother and Atobe-kun.

"40 – 30 TO ATOBE!"

"Be awed by my prowess!"

I rolled my eyes.

"He hasn't changed at all..." I muttered to myself.

The guy next to me glanced at me through the corner of his eyes but I disregarded him.

After what seemed to be hours, the match finished with Onii-chan as the winner after a jaw-breaking tie break.

I smiled and clapped with everyone else. Then, as if he heard my laugh through the deafening sounds of cheers, Onii-chan looked up and caught my eye.

I smiled and walked down towards the Seigaku regulars who had also seen what the Buchou had seen. I jumped over the fence and walked towards the big group. Suddenly, a blur of blue and white rushed towards me and I found myself suffocating from the tight grip around my midriff and the thundering pats on my back. I accepted it happily, and after they had calmed down, I looked towards my big brother. He had a slight smile on his face and he looked at me with a soft expression. I realised that the people surrounding us on the stands, observing the team's strange reaction to my arrival had burst into whispers as they took in Tezuka's smile. He really hasn't changed at all.

"It's a very pleasant and unexpected surprise Kuniko. Why didn't you say anything about you coming back?" said my brother, with a warm smile.

We were now out of the courts, away from prying eyes and were standing under a Sakura tree, the lean form of my brother leaning against the trunk and his serious gaze taking in my own petite form, picking up the fallen flowers and breathing in the heavenly scent.

"I just wanted to surprise you guys," I said happily, as I got up from my crouch and twirled around, trying to catch the falling flowers as a strong wind rustled the branches of the tree.

My mission complete as I came to a stop with a bunch of the beautiful, pink flowers in my arms, I smiled at my brother with a cheeky grin.

"So...did I succeed in surprising you oh wise brother?"

He chuckled and was about to answer when a familiar drawl filled the peace.

"Oi Tezuka!"

Our heads both instinctively turned towards the speaker.

A group of boys were walking towards us, it's leader being the person to grab our attention. I recognized the school uniform straightaway.

Atobe and his team mates came to a stop, resting in the shade of the tree, away from the midday sun.

"Don't think that this is over Tezuka. I will beat you next time."

"Hn," was the reply from the tennis player, his face expression showing that the big brother figure was gone, and was replaced by the captain of one of the most respected tennis teams among middle schools.

However, his reply had not been heard as Atobe's attention had already been transferred to the other Tezuka in the vicinity.

"Kuniko-chan. You've grown. Although...you still have a lot to catch up on," he said smugly, indicating the height difference.

"Baka! I'm not short. You're just tall," I said, but I didn't deny the fact that I did feel very dwarfed amongst my brother and the Hyotei tennis team.

At my retort, Atobe rolled his eyes in amusement and began to introduce me to his team. I had never met them personally although I had heard many stories (mostly very amusing) and I was excited that I could finally put faces to the never-ending list of names that I had heard.

"This is Kabaji."

"Usu."

"Oshitari."

"Hajimeshite."

"Gakuto."

"Yoroshiku."

"Shishido."

"Yo."

"Ootori."

"Yoroshiku!"

"Hiyoshi."

"Hajimemashite Tezuka-san"

"And lastly...Jirou."

"..."

I chuckled at the sight of Jirou-san slumped over one of Kabaji-san's shoulder, snoring lightly.

Atobe sighed and shrugged helplessly.

Suddenly, I also felt the urge to yawn and I realised that my previous bout of adrenaline had all been used up. My lack of sleep had finally caught up with me and I felt myself start to sway.

Strong hands caught my shoulders and I found myself leaning against my brother's chest.

"Atobe. You can catch up later because I think Kuniko needs her rest for now," said my brother and began to lead me away from the group.

Atobe nodded and smiled at me.

"Ore-sama will see you later."

I nodded sleepily and waved goodbye to the team before turning my back.

Through the haziness, the thought of finally seeing my parents again filled me with warmth and the image of our family together again was the last before I finally dozed off.


	2. Chapter 2

**THANK YOU EVERYONE FOR YOUR REVIEWS~~ just to clarify things, they are in highschool, not middle school as it is set in the anime – just to make it more interesting. So for example, Tezuka and Kuniko are in their 3rd year of highschool.**

**DISCLAIMER: I do not own the Prince of Tennis series or the characters; the only exceptions being my OCs.**

**Chapter 2**

It was too bright. I winced and tried to close my eyes but I realized that they were already shut. I groaned and rolled over, and dug my face into the warm covers of the bed, soaking up the warmth of the sun coming through the gap between my blue, checkered curtains. I lied there, relaxing when my wondering eye landed on the digital clock on the bed-side table.

_9:45_

I was late.

Everything froze before I leapt out of bed and ran to the bathroom to begin my morning procedure. After spending a few seconds in the shower dropping the shampoo bottle a million times, I came out to pick the outfit of the week. Note the sarcasm.

Trying to get dressed, while simultaneously drying my hair was not an easy feat but I managed to look presentable to show up at school (like I somehow managed to do everyday), grabbed my bag and then proceeded to kick my bedroom door open. But then….it hit me…..

I was not in England.

I was in Japan.

It was Sunday.

Which meant...

There was no school...

I found myself face-palming. My brain was catching up to me from the rush of this morning. _I don't have to go to school because I'm in another country._ Laughing at my own stupidity, I lazily dropped my bag on the bean bag in the corner of my room and made my way towards the kitchen, deciding that I deserved a proper breakfast after all that unneeded exercise.

As I found myself nearing the kitchen, the smell of breakfast drifted into my nostrils and my mouth began to water. I peeked around the wall of the kitchen and saw mum busy making breakfast and I was pleased to note that it was traditional Japanese food. Having spent two years in England with no way of tasting my mum's traditional cooking had set me on a rampage as soon as I set foot off the plane. My dismal cooking skills did not help my stay in England and the only way I had survived was a kind, old British lady who, in return for babysitting her grandchildren, would invite me over for meals.

"Kuniko~"

While I had been reminiscing, my mother had noticed me leaning against the wall.

I smiled at her and sat down at the kitchen table and watched her set breakfast in front of me.

"Itadakimasu!"

As I dug in, mum pulled out a chair and took in my face. Her wise eyes framed with very slight wrinkles from age reflecting how happy she was that I was here.

"I can't believe you're back home, my little baby."

I slipped my hand into hers and squeezed.

"I know. I missed you too Kaa-san."

We stayed like that for a while before I went back to eating, but at a more modest pace.

"Where's tou-san and nii-chan?"

"Mitsu-kun is out on his morning run and your father was called to work. And there is your brother now."

The front door slammed and a few seconds, my brother's serious face peeked around the corner.

"Tadaima."

"Okaeri Mitsu-kun. How was your morning run?"

"Good," was his stoic reply.

Just then, his phone rang and he left as he answered it. For a few minutes, the only sounds filling the kitchen was the clattering of spoon and chopsticks on the plates as I devoured breakfast. Soon after, he returned, freshly showered and picked up his chopsticks as okaa-san placed a plate in front of him.

After taking a bite and swallowing, he broke the silence.

"After breakfast, I'll be meeting with the regulars at the tennis courts. Do you want to join me Kuniko?"

"Was that what the phone call was about?"

"Hn."

I thought over it, decided 'why not?' and told him so. I was kind of excited to tell you the truth. Although I'm not really a tennis fan, or have said skills which I failed to inherit from my brother, I still appreciated the excitement brought by a game and the dynamic moves that these tennis players managed to somehow execute. Filled with anticipation, I quickly swallowed the last few mouthfuls of rice and quickly went upstairs to change. Choosing a simple outfit of dark red skinny jeans and a t-shirt, I quickly put on a pair of black converse shoes before rushing down the stairs to slip my arm through my brother's who had been waiting patiently for me. I bounced along next to him, filling his ears with stories of England and the friends I made there. My brother remained stoic with his never-changing facial expression but I could tell he was listening through the tiny smile which lingered on his lips and soft eyes through his glasses.

In no time at all, we arrived at the street courts to see a match going on with a large number of tennis players watching on the side, seemingly having abandoned their own games. On the side, I saw Eiji-kun spotting us and waving excitedly to us to join them. The rest of the tennis regulars were there and they greeted us but their attention were soon pulled back to the game. I felt a nudge next to me to see Atobe standing beside me. I smiled at him (receiving a smirk in return) and saw him address my brother. But this time, his obnoxious tone was gone and was replaced by a more serious, and sombre tone.

"They're back," was his simple statement.

My brother's eyes shifted, his eyes reflecting that he was listening.

"Hn."

I was confused. My confusion led me to realise another fact. The atmosphere was very tense. I had been to a couple of street tennis matches with my brother before I had left for England and one thing I remembered about them was that there was always a fun and playful, while also very competitive aspect to it – what can you expect when a bunch of hormone-driven teenage boys try to show off their masculinity? But at the moment, there was a difference in the air. There was still a competitive atmosphere and I could just see all the different tennis teams analysing the players in the match at the very moment but...there was also a very tense and serious, almost hateful attitude towards the players. Even the Seigaku regulars, many of them usually very light-hearted took in the scene before them with serious gazes.

Syuusuke-kun's eyes were open.

_Pok._

_Pok._

The sound of the tennis ball bouncing back and forth brought my attention to the court. The guys that were playing seemed to be foreigners, possibly from Europe if I'm not mistaken. My first impression of the one at the far end of the court was TALL. Wow... even from afar, I could easily tell that he reached almost 2 metres. The racket he was holding seemed so tiny compared to his stature and it was an almost comical picture if not for how his muscles bulged from the shirt he was wearing and but at the seem time so light on his feet, reflecting his formidable nature as an opponent. On the other hand, the figure closer to us had a more slender figure, however that didn't seem to phase his skills as a tennis player and seemed to return the heavy ball from the opposing side with ease. Although their play didn't show any special moves, it just being a simple rally, they seemed to have a presence about them, which every other tennis player felt. What was about these tennis players that was so interesting and garnered such attention, even from reputable captains such as Tezuka Kunimitsu and Atobe Keigo? Not only them, but I recognised many other faces from different schools in the crowd who I knew to be as tough as they can be.

The match drew to a close with the players wordlessly just walking off the court, ignoring the piercing gazes directed towards them. There seemed to be a matching sigh all around as the two tennis players gathered their gear and walked off the courts out of sight.

That was interesting.

Knowing that the show was over, everyone just returned to what they had been doing previously, either playing tennis or acting as spectators. Waving goodbye to everyone, my brother led me away, back to the direction of home. I followed in contemplative silence, watching the broad back of my brother who would receive various looks from players we passed, some even looking at me curiously.

In silence we walked.

"Nii-chan?"

"Hn?"

"Who were they?"

He paused momentarily before resuming his walk.

A few minutes later he answered me.

"Asher Kale and Nathan Russel. They are from a European team which will be attending a national tennis camp in a few weeks. Seigaku will be there, along with Hyotei."

"But why was everyone so serious about it? It almost seemed like...like they hated them..."

"Last year, there was an unfortunate scandal involving one of their tennis players and sexual harrassment. Although nothing had been proven, there has been other rumours involving the bribing of police to cover it up. It has been more than enough to give them a certain reputation and I think their appearance again has made everyone wary because last year's scandal and how it was so easily covered up shows that they might have the ability to try _anything_."

My brother's words left me to absorb the new information and the rest of the walk passed by in silence.

That night, my brother's story kept on bugging me but at the thought that school was starting the next day, I forgot all about it and it wouldn't bother me for another couple of weeks.


	3. Chapter 3

**!**

**I've just been very busy lately cause it's my last year of highschool and work work work~~! My fault for starting a story at my busiest time of year...anyways...THANK YOU TO EVERYONE WHO REVIEWED, ALERTED, FAVOURITED...ETC :D A THOUSAND THANK YOUS AND HEARTS AND KISSES 3 anyways...enjoy :)**

**DISCLAIMER: I do not own the Prince of Tennis series or the characters; the only exceptions being my OCs.**

**Chapter 3**

I yawned as I tried to keep up with my brother's longer strides. Oh the pains of being short! I grumbled at the early hour I had been forced to get up. It had been a while so my memories were a bit fuzzy on the directions to Seigaku and my parents being busy themselves, couldn't drop me off by car. So unfortunately, I had been forced to get up earlier than usual to keep up with my brother's schedule as tennis captain as he had been my only way to school without getting lost.

I yawned again.

I saw out of the corner of my eye, Onii-chan glancing at me, amused at my complaints.

Soon after, I nearly crashed into my brother when he suddenly stopped out of the blue.

"We're here."

With bleary eyes, I cast my eye around my surroundings to see that we were indeed at the entrance to the school. There were few people around us, it still being more than an hour until school started, so it was very quiet. I waved goodbye to my brother after I got the directions to the tennis courts from the main office and made my way inside.

There, there was a lady sitting at the desk and filling out papers. She looked up as I walked in and asked, "Can I help you?"

"Yes. I'm a new student, I've come to sign in. My name is Tezuka Kuniko, 3rd year."

The lady's eyes brightened in recognition of my name.

"Ahhhh Tezuka-kun's twin sister right? Welcome back to Japan~"

I smiled. "Thank you."

With a wide smile, she gave me a form to sign and after 10 minutes, I walked out of the office in my new uniform and a timetable. Silently, reciting my brother's directions in my head, I found myself at the tennis courts and the sight of the tennis club, running laps around the court with my brother's imposing figure watching on.

I made my to the sidelines where there were some benches and waved to my brother when he saw me.

Giving me a nod, he turned back just in time to admonish some of the juniors who had been slacking in their running.

Lying down on the bench and chuckling at the unfortunate victims, I found myself drifting off to sleep, softly mumbling to myself that I could do with a few more minutes.

…

I jolted awake as someone started started poking my shoulders. With sleepy eyes, I looked up to see the regulars all staring down at me with amusement.

I seem to be a great source of amusement to tennis players of late, I thought sourly to myself.

Grumbling nonsense under my breath, I sat up, rubbing the sleep out of my eyes.

"Kuni-chan hasn't changed at all hasn't she Oishi?" said Eiji laughing to himself.

"Yeah. Still not a morning-person at all," replied the vice-captain, smiling.

"How can you lot be so cheery and energetic at this time of morning?" I whined to them, finally waking up a bit.

Then I realized what time it was, quickly blurted out a "Eep! Class is starting soon! Bye guys~ got to go~!" and whizzed off towards classes leaving a bemused tennis team behind me.

Faintly remembering the directions towards my first class, it took a while before I managed to find it and class had already started at this point.

Staring at the door in front of me, I took one breath to stabilize myself, knocked then opened the door. Thirty pairs of eyes turned my way and stared.

"Uhhh..." I said awkwardly...

Then the teacher seemed to recognise me.

"Ahh you must be the new student. Please come in," she said, "Students. We have a new student here today. Please give her a warm welcome."

A polite, but curious applause took place, excited whisperings and mutterings slowly sweeping through the room.

The teacher gestured at me and asked, "Why don't you introduce yourself?"

I smiled and turned to the class before bowing.

"Hello everyone. My name is Tezuka Kuniko and I just transferred from England. I hope we become good friends."

By this time, the whisperings had gotten louder. It seems that my name had raised more questions.

"Tezuka?"

"Could she be related to Tezuka from the Tennis Club?"

"It can't be...she says she's from England..."

The teacher ignoring this called everyone to silence and sent me to an empty desk before resuming the lesson.

As she began to write down several different math problems on the board, I took a moment to ready myself to more awkward introductions awaiting for me, before grabbing my pen and quickly diving into some math.

"Kuniko."

It was break time and I was already exhausted. While my classmates had been chattering around me and eating snacks, I had been resting my head on the table when my brother's voice resounded through the classroom. I looked up to see him beckoning towards him so I stood up and followed him out towards the corridor.

"Is everything okay?"

I smiled. "I'm okay. Just tired."

He nodded. "Okay. Just came to check. At lunch, meet me in front of the cafeteria. You can eat with us."

Nodding at me in goodbye and putting a reassuring hand on my head, he left, and it was only then did I realise that what felt like the whole school, was staring at me. Not knowing what to do, I quickly escaped their gazes and went back to my desk, but not without wondering what the hell was wrong with these people.

Ahh finally! Freedom!

It was lunchtime and I found myself wondering through the corridors, occasionally asking for directions to the cafeteria.

"Oi~ You!"

I turned towards the owner of the voice, only to feel a sudden stinging sensation on my left cheek.

Bewildered, I put my hand on the abused cheek and stared at the girl in front of me, who's face was red with anger. She was a pretty girl, which was my first thought. A typical, Asian highschool student, with a slender figure and long, bleached hair accompanying a modest height of about 160cm.

She reached out again, to have another go at my poor face, which I dodged and managed to grab her flailing arms. By then, our commotion had led to a circle of students who had been on the way to the cafeteria, gazing in interest.

"What was that for, girl-I've-never-seen-before?" I said, a slight hint of annoyance in the tone of my voice.

The girl harrumphed, pushing away my hands which had been trying to prevent her from slapping me again and brushing off who-knows-what off her uniform.

"You deserved that you bitch. How dare you lay hands on MY Tezuka-sama?"

She glared at me, expecting my answer.

I could only stare at her, my mouth gaping at the hilarity of the situation. I felt amusement bubbling up inside me and tried to smother a laugh. Geez. Jealous fan-girls? I thought that only happened in dramas...

I tried to wipe a slowly forming smirk off my face but too late...the girl had already seen it.

"What? You think this is funny?"

I stretched my hands in front of me in a helpless manner.

"Look. I think there's been a misunder-"

"I don't care what you say! Just promise me that you'll stay away from him and I'll let you off easily!"

I shook my head and replied back, deciding that I'll let myself have some fun.

"Uhhh...I think that will be kind of hard. You see... I am a _VERY_ important person to Onii-chan-"

I was interrupted by a loud gasp resonating from not only the girl, but also people from behind her. I looked around to realise that she wasn't the only girl "confronting" me. It seemed that she was the ring-leader and her followers had been cheering her on from the sidelines in this "confrontation".

At my last remark, the girl seemed to be hyperventilating. I was kind of worried.

"You...How dare you...HOW DARE YOU!"

The girl ran at me, her claw-like nails stretching out. Taken by surprise by her sudden speed, I cringed when suddenly, a heaven-like voice pierced through the tense atmosphere.

"What is going on here?"

The girl stopped suddenly, her hands inches from my face.

We both turned towards the voice and I sighed in relief. Brother to the rescue!~~

I opened my mouth to greet my brother when the girl in front of me had beaten me.

But...it wasn't the girl from a few seconds ago.

_That_ girl had been on the verge of an explosion, her face nearly purple and claws out. But _this_ girl, was a very calm, gentle, and sweet looking girl. What a transformation!

"Tezuka-sama~ I'm sorry if this commotion has bothered you. This girl and I just had a mild disagreement which will be sorted out soon," said the girl with a pleasant, innocent smile on her face.

I snorted in amusement.

While the girl had been blabbering on about our "mild disagreement", Onii-chan had been taking in my appearance. My uniform had been slightly ruffled during the excitement and a bright, red hand-print was very visibly splayed across my face.

Brushing past the girl, who by now had noticed onii-chan's gaze on me, he came to a stop in front of me. I noticed that the girl was now glaring daggers at me behind his back.

I smirked at her.

"Onii-chan~ thank God. I thought I would never make it to our meeting place. This place is so confusing..." I pouted at him.

He ignored at my attempt at being cute and lifted my chin up to take a proper look at the red mark.

Behind us, whispers had broken out and the crazy fan-girls looked just about to faint. I could just _feel_ the rumours spreading around the school right this moment.

Then the whispers were silenced as my brother said to me, "Who did this to you?"

I waved nonchalantly at him.

"Onii-chan don't worry. It doesn't hurt at all."

Then, the girl, who had been staring at our conversation in disbelief interrupted me.

"How dare you address Tezuka-sama with such disrespect? Hurry up and apologise!" she hissed at me with venom.

"Why?" I asked her, amused. "What else do I call him? He is my brother after all..."

Time stopped. You could have heard a pin drop in the silent hallway. I heard some muffled sniggers and turned to see the rest of the regulars, turning purple from holding in their laughter.

"What?..." whispered the girl in horror, now taking the time study us standing together. Our same hair colour, eyes, and nose, helping her piece together the fact that she had just made a very grave mistake.

"Did you have fun?"

"Yup. I mean...did you look at that girl's face? I nearly died laughing!" I said, still giggling from 10 minutes ago.

"Neh I knew there was some reason why we got along so well Kuniko-chan~" said Syuusuke, smirking.

I gave him a smirk of my own and watched in amusement as the team shuddered, glad that they weren't on the receiving end of our wrath. Not at the moment anyway. Evil laugh.


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N Yes. I'm sorry! Been out of the fanfiction scene for a bit but now I'm back with a new chapter hehehe. Hope you enjoy! I tried to fit in Yukimura's scene with this chapter but I thought it was getting too long so that's pushed to the next chapter which hopefully, I will be able to get up soon.**

CHAPTER 4

"...-he Nara period of Japan constituted a strong...Kuniko-chan! If you want to sleep, I suggest you leave my class."

My head snapped up from my previously dozing state and met the stern eyes of the teacher.

Chuckles went around the room while I could hear Eiji snickering behind me.

I meekly apologised and quickly sat down as the sensei returned back to the incredibly interesting (cough cough) lecture about Japanese history.

It had been a few weeks since my entrance into the school and the wonderful welcome I received from Onii-chan's fanclub and I had since settled.

Even thinking about it now brought a bemused smirk onto my face. Honestly. Because I had left Japan before Onii-chan had become captain, I hadn't experienced first-hand the popularity of the Seigaku tennis team, only having heard from the tennis regulars during my very brief stays during the holidays while Onii-chan's stoic personality meant that he never held crazy hormonal teenage girls lusting after him a matter worth discussing in his emails or phone calls.

Thankfully, my fears for the intellectual capacity for my fellow students of the same gender were for naught as after my first encounter with the 'crazies', a nickname that Eiji, Momo and Kaoru-kun had created, I met the more dignified section of the female student population who although were also very surprised that their hunky (eww) tennis buchou had a twin sister, were polite enough not to scream in my face based on assumptions.

As for the leader of the 'crazies'...

After our initial meeting and the period getting over the hilariousness of the situation, I became curious and approached the god of 'not-knowing-the-meaning-of-privacy' – Inui.

_The library was quiet with the occasional rustle of pages turning and students' whispered conversations. My footsteps, muffled by the carpet floor led me to the west side of the library, near the windows, where I knew Sadaharu-kun would be. As I turned the corner, the light glinting off a certain pair of glasses proved my theory correct so I quickly made my way around the tables to plop myself on the seat opposite him._

"_Hmm...to ask for help improving your tennis skills 5%, finishing the history essay 26%, to-"_

"_Come on Sadaharu-kun," I chuckled as I cut him off, "You know why I'm here."_

_His glasses glinted, almost creepily I might add, as he reached for his notebook containing data, probably about every person in the school._

"_Name is Watanabe Remi, 3__rd__ year, weighs 50kg, enjoys occasional rounds of-"_

"_Woah woah wait a second," I stopped him exasperated. "I don't even want to know how you know all that."_

_I swear he does it on purpose, if only to show that there's a chance he knows everything – __everything__ about us. He raised an eyebrow before proceeding to tell me what seemed like her life history._

After that afternoon with Inui, with a basic (very detailed) understanding of Watanabe and the determination to never approach the resident data tennis player for information about anyone in the future, I noticed that I began to see Watanabe more around the courts during practice although she seemed to be avoiding me. I however, didn't give much thought to it and instead focused on my brother's 100th attempt at trying to bring up my tennis skills on par with at least a 1st year.

Even now, sitting at my desk in the middle of a lesson, I could still feel the amusement of the tennis club as their heavenly buchou attempted to instruct his sister how to hit a ball properly.

In the end, after nearly 2 hours of frustration and exasperation, I couldn't help but burst out laughing and firmly told my hopeful brother that tennis was just not for me, and that all the skills that I lacked was made up for by Onii-chan's over-exceptional skills. That particular memory made me smile as it was followed by an outing with the regulars to a fast-food outlet where the boys proceeded to stuff their faces with burgers and soft drink.

"Kuni-chan~~~!"

I blinked and with a yelp, almost fell off the chair.

"Eiji!"

"Kuni-chan you okay?!" Eiji scrambled to give me a hand as I stood up, grumbling.

"Did you really have to have your face right up in front of me? You scared the crap out of me," I whined to my friend who was grinning and rubbing his head sheepishly.

"Nya sorry..."

It was then that I realised that we were the only ones left in the classroom.

"Hey did the bell go?", I asked, confused.

Eiji jumped excitedly.

"Yup! Come on~ let's go!"

He grabbed my arm and pulled me through the door, barely giving me time to grab my bag.

"Okay okay. No need to rush!" I laughed as I was dragged by Eiji. In no time at all, we were heading out the doors of the school when further up, we spotted a certain first-year calmly walking out the gates of the school with a tennis bag on his back.

"ECHIZENNNNN~~!" called the bundle of hyperactivity next to me.

The first-year stopped and turned around to say a greeting back but instead found himself unable to breathe with his sempai wrapped around him.

"Eiji! Let the kid breathe," I amusedly said.

"Ahh sorry sorry," Eiji sheepishly said, and to the relief of said first-year, released him from his grasp.

I smiled at the boy.

"Hey Ryoma-kun! Are you going home now?"

He nodded and joined us as we walked past other students chatting and hanging out, taking full advantage of the fact that it was now the weekend.

As we walked, with Eiji filling the air with an enthusiastic recount of how his day went, I absentmindedly eyed the boy that my brother had continuously talked about in our e-mails just before I came back to Japan. Even though I had been at school for a few weeks now, I had barely gotten a chance to have a proper conversation with the kid but from the few practice matches I was able to watch, I was impressed.

It was amidst these thoughts that a short musical tune alerted me to a text message.

I took my phone out of my pocket and opened the incoming message.

_Come to Tokyo Shopping Mall now._

_-Ore-sama_

"Che," I pouted. "Who is he to tell me where to go?"

I sighed and interrupted Eiji mid-sentence.

"Sorry boys. Looks like you'll have to go on without me."

And before Eiji could ask me where I was going, I was already waving at them as I ran off in the opposite direction.

"Took you long enough."

"Ha! You should be happy that I turned up," I teased as I slid myself into the seat opposite him in a small café in the busy shopping centre.

"I knew you would not be able to resist being in ore-sama's presence again," sniffed Atobe as he took a sip of whatever posh tea he was drinking.

I chuckled, shaking my head. Things had not changed.

"Jesus, we haven't been here in ages," I exclaimed. I looked around to take in the café that Atobe and I had frequented before I had gone overseas. Not many knew this but Atobe's mother and mine were close friends so when we were all younger, we would go on play dates. Though my brother and Atobe headed towards more of a rivalry through their passion for tennis, Atobe and I had struck up a friendship which still remained strong even though we both attended different schools.

"Yes I thought so which is why I called you. Ore-sama shall take you shopping today," he smirked.

I groaned.

"Seriously?! You know I don't mind shopping but you always shop to the extreme. And you never let me pay!" I whined.

His smirked widened.

The next few hours were just a flurry of clothing, clothing, Atobe clicking his fingers to get everything he wanted and more clothing. By the second hour, I wasn't even bothering taking in what he was forcing me to change into. I didn't mind. It was just one of the quirks in the relationship we had. He was allowed to use me as his Barbie doll and I was allowed to make fun of him to his face. At least he took into account of where I drew the line. That meant no frills.

"Uh…I think you went a little bit overboard today Keigo…"

I stared at the pile of bags and boxes filled with an assortment of clothing and shoes as men in suits, seemingly from out of nowhere, appeared to carry them away. No doubt, my house would be getting a delivery soon.

"No matter. I am pleased," he said with a smug look on his face. This look held for a moment before he relented and with a somewhat sheepish grin, or as much as Atobe could be sheepish while still being dignified, he said, "My hands were getting itchy".

I chuckled. "Oh I missed you Keigo."

It was pretty dark when I waved goodbye to Atobe who had driven me home in his limousine. I walked through the gate and through the cobbled pathway into the warmth of my house. After greeting my parents and being informed that everything had been delivered to my room, I slowly made my way upstairs when I bumped into Onii-chan who had just stepped out from the bathroom. He was wearing a grey shirt and some sweatpants with a towel hanging around his neck but what was most amusing was that he was blowing on his glasses which had fogged up in the humid atmosphere of the bathroom after a hot shower.

I giggled.

He rolled his eyes and flicked me on the forehead before placing his glasses to where it belonged.

"Why are you back so late?" he asked as he walked back to his room with me trailing behind him.

"I was with Atobe. He took me shopping again."

"Hn."

He sat down at his desk and opened his laptop while I jumped onto his bed and made myself comfortable. I was already drifting to dreamland when suddenly Onii-chan spoke.

"Ah Kuniko?"

"Hmm?" I mumbled.

"Coach wants to talk to you when we get back to school."

"Hn?" I opened one eye to look questioningly at my brother.

"She will explain when you go see her."

"Aww come on. Now you made me all curious. What is it?" I rolled onto my back with my head hanging off the edge of the bed so that I had an upside-down view of my brother.

He smirked. "You will see."

"Ehhh? Tennis camp?!"

"That's right," said Coach Ryuzaki. "Normally, I'd get my granddaughter, Sakuno, to do it but she's off visiting relatives out of town so I was wondering if _you_ would be able to act as manager. It won't be hard. You just need to take care of the players needs like fetching water and towels and making sure everyone is where they should be. And I know you're already close with the regulars so they should listen to you."

It was Monday afternoon and I was currently in Coach Ryuzaki's office. Although it had nearly killed me, I had managed to live through my curiousity and was now standing in front of her desk with my brother silently listening from a corner in his tennis uniform.

I hesitated before I thought, 'Why the hell not?' and replied, "Sure. I can do that. How long does it go for?"

The coach smiled. "3 nights and 4 days. It will be in a few weeks' time during break so you won't miss any school work."

"Okay that's good," I smiled. "So is it like a tennis tournament?"

"Not exactly. More like a training camp where students from different teams come together to train from well-known national, and even sometimes international, coaches."

"Ahh I see. Sounds interesting. I can't wait," I said with a grin.

Suddenly, a loud crash resonated through the office before a loud 'whoop' filled the surprised silence.

"Whoopeee! Kuni-chan's coming with us?"

I turned around with my eyes wide and my eyebrows disappearing under my fringe to see Eiji standing in the doorway giddy with excitement with Oishi-kun standing behind him with his face in his palm. Next to them were the other regulars, all with varying degrees of amusement but also with a hint of hope.

I smiled widely, touched.

"Yup. I'm coming with you boys."

They all cheered, the loudest being Eiji before I found myself being carried out to a round of celebratory hamburgers.


End file.
